1) Survival is of the utmost importance on the reef. Explain how coloration benefits both predators and prey. Give examples of each. Survival on the reef is of the upmost importance. There are many ways that creatures on the reef attempt to achieve these means, one of these methods is called coloration. Coloration is important because it allows residents of the reef to communicate with each other in very simple terms, but also very effectively. These communications include mating or warnings to other residents. For example, many gobies and wrasses have blue or black lines that identify them as cleaner fish. This gives them a certain level of immunity from other predators because of the services that they provide. But other fish realize
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What if fish couldn’t change colors? What mechanisms could be used instead? The main point of coloration is to convey a simple but very clear message for all to see. Some fish do this by their behavior. For example “Some juvenile cleaner wrasses of the genus Labriodes attract customers by swimming in a rhythmic fashion with their tails bobbing up and down. Similarly, the Pederson cleaner shrimp, which lives in association with the corkscrew anemone, advertises by rocking back and forth while fluttering its white antennae” (Murphy 104). Both of these methods are effective at convey the message that the organism is trying to send without coloration. Another example to look at is that of the creole wrasses, some jacks, and the parrotfish. The text states that all three orient themselves in a position were their head is down to let other fish know that they are ready to clean if requested. Camouflage is another effective way for a fish to go about this task of communicating without using coloration. The text states that camouflage is a form of deception that is achieved through coloration or form or behavior. So coloration is only a third of that equation. And “Since camouflage is a form of adaptation (evolution), it follows that the most amazing acts of camouflage are found where biodiversity is highest: in the warm tropical seas, particularly in sheltered places that are not destroyed frequently by large storms.” (Camouflage under
What if fish couldn’t change colors? What mechanisms could be used instead? The main point of coloration is to convey a simple but very clear message for all to see. Some fish do this by their behavior. For example “Some juvenile cleaner wrasses of the genus Labriodes attract customers by swimming in a rhythmic fashion with their tails bobbing up and down. Similarly, the Pederson cleaner shrimp, which lives in association with the corkscrew anemone, advertises by rocking back and forth while fluttering its white antennae” (Murphy 104). Both of these methods are effective at convey the message that the organism is trying to send without coloration. Another example to look at is that of the creole wrasses, some jacks, and the parrotfish. The text states that all three orient themselves in a position were their head is down to let other fish know that they are ready to clean if requested. Camouflage is another effective way for a fish to go about this task of communicating without using coloration. The text states that camouflage is a form of deception that is achieved through coloration or form or behavior. So coloration is only a third of that equation. And “Since camouflage is a form of adaptation (evolution), it follows that the most amazing acts of camouflage are found where biodiversity is highest: in the warm tropical seas, particularly in sheltered places that are not destroyed frequently by large storms.” (Camouflage under